The St. Louis Cardinals come into the 2012 offseason having won a World Series in 2011 and falling one game short of returning to the Fall Classic in 2012.  The team, for the most part, is set at almost every position.  They have publicly said they will be exploring the option of upgrading the middle infield, the only two spots on the team that anyone can easily look at and say “they could be better”.

But that bothers this writer.  I do not like a team that simply “stands pat”, no matter how successful they have been in the past.  This team can be better at a few spots on the field and with today’s notebook, I look to the top of the free agent class and ask the simple question: Why not look at Michael Bourn?

Now, hear me out before you jump on me for not being a Jon Jay supporter, for wanting to throw money around just for the sake of spending, or for blocking prospects as they progress through the Cardinals’ system.  I assure  you, there are good reasons to examine the possibility of one of the top outfielders available on the market wearing the Birds On The Bat.

Defense Is Key
Personally, when I look at the middle of the diamond (catcher, second base, shortstop, center field), I prefer to have guys that will solidify the defense.

Now, I’m not trying to say that Jon Jay is a bad defender.  Quite the opposite really.  That’s the point here, if I can look at a player and say that he is an upgrade in defense at a key position where I feel the team is already strong, that shows a lot of respect for the other player.  Michael Bourn is a two-time Gold Glove Award winner in center field and has the speed to help cover the gaps that are left by having power guys like Matt Holliday and Carlos Beltran at the corners.

This Bench Needs Help
It was Chris Reed who mentioned in a recent discussion the lack of faith in the bench.  Adron Chambers and Shane Robinson are average players, but pinch hitting late in a game when the Cardinals need runners, they do not inspire a ton of confidence.

Jon Jay has proven in the past that he is more than capable of coming off the bench during a ball game and producing.  In addition, he has proven in the past that he can produce when not in the lineup consistently.  He is the type of player that can jump into the starting lineup at any point but can also be a weapon late in games.

It Is Not Financial Suicide
Looking at what the Cardinals have coming off the books for this season (Lance Berkman, Kyle Lohse), reinvesting that money in a player like Bourn is not the end of the world.

Many experts project Bourn to get a contract very similar to that of Torii Hunter when he signed his former deal with Anaheim.  That projects to a 5 year/$90 million contract or an average value of $18 million per year.  Puma’s 2012 contract was for $12 million while Lohse was earning just under $12 million himself.  Personally, I feel that Bourn will land closer to $15 million a season for around four years, though either number is within reason for the Cardinals.

The youth of this franchise offers some financial flexibility over the next few seasons.  With key positions being patrolled by home grown talent and other prospects being projected to take over other positions, the time for being able to take on a bit of salary is now.

It Doesn’t Block Prospects
The Cardinals key prospect in the outfield is Oscar Taveras, who has spent most of his minor league career patrolling center field.

That being said, Taveras has been projected by many to have a future at the corner outfield positions and the Cardinals, most likely, see him as the right fielder of the future after Beltran’s contract plays out.  The only person displaced by the addition of Bourn over the next four to five years is Jon Jay.

It Solves The Top Of The Lineup
It has been a long time since the Cardinals have had a player that can solidify the leadoff position the way Michael Bourn can.

Yes, he strikes out a lot.  I do not like that in the leadoff role any more than the next guy.  But he steals a lot of bases, walked a career high 70 times last season, was able to show occasional power with nine home runs, and is a commodity that the Cardinals have not had in a very long time.

Summary
Sometimes you have to be willing to upgrade even when you are satisfied with what you have.  The Cardinals have a chance to improve themselves defensively, on the bench, and at the top of the order in a big way by taking a look at Bourn as a key component of the future.

While I do not feel the Cardinals have to make a move like this to continue to be successful, it would be nice to see the team make a move like this in an effort to get better.  After all, it would be nice to win the division instead of fighting their way into the playoffs through the wild card.

Bill Ivie started i70baseball to write about his love for the game and the teams he enjoys watching most, the Cardinals and the Royals.

As a guy who has lacked in home run power over the beginning of his career in Kansas City, Billy Butler, has taken the bull by the horns this season setting a new career high in home runs only 111 games into the 2012 season.  Butler is on pace to become the first Royal to hit 30 home runs in a season since Jermaine Dye did it in 2000. A 12 year drought could be broken by a player who for most of his young career has been criticized for not having enough power for not only his stature but also his position being designated hitter.

The power has changed from double to home runs this season mainly because instead of relying on his upper body to do all the work at the plate Butler has worked hard to get his legs stronger over the last 9 months and using them at the plate has equated into more lift on balls that are now carrying over the fence instead of bouncing off of the warning track.  One stat that has not been given enough credit was his ability to hit the double.  Trailing only New York Yankee second basemen in doubles since the beginning of the 2009 season, Butler has 158 two baggers, according to Baseball-Reference.  That is an astounding number that seems to have been pushed away because they are not turning into home runs. Everyone believes that if you have to power to hit that many doubles then you have the power to hit home runs. It does not work that way because it is not about the power or strength but the swing that the hitter has.  Over the first parts of his career Butler seemed to not lift the ball when it was needed and would use a more level swing that resulted in line drives in the gaps instead of towering fly balls into the stands.  But until the last two season Butler simply was not supposed to be the guy who hit the ball over the wall and gave the team the offensive lift they need. He has been asked to be a hitter and a hitter he has been.  But now he needs to continue to show the power he has shown so far in 2012.

On pace for 34 home runs this season two shy of the club record of 36 set in 1985 by the powerful Steve Balboni. The amount of home runs is not what stands out the most in the case of Butler.  The fact that he recognized that as the hitting leader of this team the best way to do that is lead by example.  In the off season he saw that he needed to work on his weakness of strength in his lower body which would help get more lift on the baseball and turn doubles in the gaps into home runs into the seats.

The philosophy that both Butler and hitting coach Kevin Seitzer have taken in the 2012 sea on seems to be working not only in the power department but a continued success to all fields for Butler. His doubles have gone down but that is what happens when the ball that were hitting the fence are now traveling over the fence.  To ask a guy to hit 30 home runs for the first time in his career and continue a pace of 47 doubles per year for the last three seasons would be outrageous.  The statistic that continues to slipped the minds of critics of Butler is the fact that the man is only 26 years old.  By comparison to other designated hitters of past that people would like to see Bulter become Edgar Martinez did not hit 30 home runs in a season until he was 37 years old.  he did flirt with 30 home runs in 1995 which still was when he was 33 years old.

Comparing the two a bit more in Martinez’s first 6 seasons in the major leagues he hit 91 home runs, 204 doubles, with 381 RBI while having a batting average of .290.  Now Butler in his first six seasons, which as of right now is 13 at bats less than Martinez had at this point in his career, has hit 97 home runs, 203 doubles, with 445 RBI and a batting average of .298, according to Baseball-Reference. If Butler continues to improve on an already good beginning to his career and progresses faster than Martinez did in Seattle than the Royals could have a once in a lifetime statistic wonder on their hands.

Everyone knew that Butler was going to be a hitter but hitters do not alway produce.  Having a guy that is going to consistently flirt with a three hundred average which never seems to dip under .290 nor exceed .315 is something that can be found anywhere but having that same guy perform with the production that Butler has shown in just six years is priceless.  He started out as two eggs over easy with a side of toast and now has turned into a full country breakfast.  But over the season to come all we can do is wait and see if Butler can become the Thanksgiving dinner to lead the Royals to success in September and beyond.

Less than two weeks into its championship-defending season and key St. Louis Cardinals are already suffering injuries. While that will likely raise Cardinals’ fans blood pressure, these injuries should not cause panic, yet.

Photo Courtesy of Erika Lynn

First baseman Lance Berkman suffered a calf strain while legging out a triple Tuesday in Cincinnati and has not played since. On the other side of the diamond, third baseman David Freese had an issue with one of his fingers during an at bat Friday against the Chicago Cubs and was a late scratch for Saturday’s game.

Long-term injuries to both of these players would be major blows to the Cardinals, but the team does have a good starting rotation and it does have players to fill gaps if bigger injuries crop up during the season.

Matt Carpenter has filled in for Berkman at first base while Berkman has been out this week. Carpenter is a good player, but he is not the answer at first base for the Cardinals. The best answer to fill Berkman’s spot might be Allen Craig.

Craig had a sensational postseason in 2011 and showed he could be a consistent offensive force while playing several positions throughout a season. Craig could certainly play first base, or third base for that matter, and the Cardinals would likely not see a dropoff at the plate or in the field.

The other Cardinals utility player who could fill a gap created by an injury is Daniel Descalso. Descalso is a very solid fielder and started the season for the Cardinals at second base ahead of Tyler Greene. Descalso also came up with several key hits for the Cardinals last season down the stretch and into the playoffs.

However, the key to all of that is to get Craig healthy. I’m not convinced Greene is the answer at second base or shortstop if Rafeal Furcal gets hurt. Many people have said Greene didn’t play well because of former manager Tony La Russa’s style. That’s a nice theory, but he is going to have to start showing consistent production to prove he’s not just a great college player at Georgia Tech who was drafted in the first round in 2005 but couldn’t produce in the major leagues.

The Cardinals do expect to get Craig and Skip Schumaker back early in the season, and that is the depth the team desperately needs with a lineup that includes four players age 32 or older.

La Russa was always great at getting maximum production from his bench players, and this isn’t to say new manager Mike Matheny won’t do the same. Still, Craig and Schumaker are much less of a dropoff from Berkman and Freese than Carpenter and Descalso and/or Greene.

This is a team that could be a strong World Series contender if its starting lineup and pitching staff stay healthy, but with an older team that if is even more pronounced than it has been for many recent Cardinals teams.

While early injuries are never good, fans can take solace that these are minor injuries and the Cardinals will have the depth to sustain some injuries to position players throughout the season. The pitching staff’s depth might be another story, especially with Chris Carpenter’s injury, but hopefully those questions don’t have to be asked and the staff remains healthy.

With the desert in the rear view mirror and the Cactus League preseason in the books, it’s about time to get things going for real.

The soaring hopes of Royals fans were tempered considerably in Surpise by injuries to Joakim Soria, Salvador Perez, Blake Wood and Felipe Paulino. The team scrambled to plug the gaps, but spring training quickly went from idyllic to daunting.

The injury to Perez was particularly detrimental to the team’s lineup, because KC lacked a big-league-caliber Plan B.

One thing is for certain, with a few exceptions, the hitters far outpaced the pitchers in Surprise. That probably comes as no surprise, actually. The combination of dry air, altitude and an off-season’s accumulation of rust would tend to hamper the pitchers. But two things are apparent – the Royals have a talented collection of hitters, and they are unsettled in the starting rotation.

But as for the hitters, no one is really shocked that Eric Hosmer led all of baseball in RBIs this spring, least of all Ned Yost.

“I feel like every time he comes us with a runner on, he’s going to drive him in,” Yost told reporters in Surprise. “I think he’s going to be a special player for us in the years to come.”

Hosmer drove in 29 runs in just 26 games, and led the Royals with a .416 average (among those with more than 10 at bats).

Possibly the most positive event of the spring was the dominance of centerfielder Lorenzo Cain. There was no question going in – he was handed the job. But rather than merely accept it, he claimed it like he was at an audition.

Cain quieted any doubters by bashing five homers in just 66 at bats, tied with Hosmer for the team lead. He batted .394, stole four bases and drove in eleven runs. Best of all, he led all regulars with a 1.255 OPS. Cain was so impressive, Yost is considering repositioning his centerfielder in the second spot in the batting order.

Right behind Cain in nearly every category was Alex Gordon, whose signing to a long-term deal was probably the highlight of the spring. Gordon added four homers, 14 RBIs, a .385 average and 1.086 OPS.

Other positives are that Alcides Escobar hit .350 and struck out just four times, and Billy Butler hit the ball with authority – four homers and seven doubles for a .672 slugging percentage.

One positive turn of events in Surprise was Yuniesky Betancourt’s showing at second base. The jury is still out on Yuni as a utility infielder, but he showed a surprising deftness around second base and may have won the starting job.

The addition of utility outfielder/infielder Jason Bourgeois may be another unexpected positive from the spring. The newcomer brought such speed and athleticism that Jarrod Dyson became expendable. In 16 plate appearances, Bourgeois produced a .375 average to go with three walks and seven stolen bases. He should prove a capable fill-in in all outfield spots and even at second base and possibly at third.

There are, of course, negatives, starting with Mike Moustakas’ 19 strikeouts to just 3 walks in 69 at bats. Had Moose not warmed up in the final week, his numbers would have been abominable. Even with the hot finish, he wound up with just 2 homers and seven RBIs, a .261 average, and a .301 OBP.

Another negative, as far as the youth movement is concerned, is the Chris Getz/Johnny Giavotella battle for the second base job. Most everyone looked forward to Giavotella becoming yet another of the prospects to claim a starting position. But Giavotella’s work at the plate during the spring didn’t make up for his less-than-stellar defense. Giavotella will start the year at Omaha, where he can play every day.

Getz was praised by Yost for remaking himself into a different player, but his .222 average and .244 SLG looks like the same old Getz.

Jeff Francoeur did not have a good spring offensively. No one seems concerned that Francoeur’s “bounce-back” year will be a one year bounce. Frenchy managed just one homer in Surprise and all his other numbers were among the worst on the team.

One player who no one cared about his offensive numbers was newly-acquired catcher Humberto Quintero. Quintero will bring stability to the catching situation in KC, but it doesn’t look like he’ll bring much pop to the offense. In eight games, he produced just four hits (none for extra bases) and one RBI.

Spring Training statistics go into the trash as soon as the teams head north. But KC fans see some positive growth from the young hitters that make this an exciting time, in spite of the injuries. Now the youngsters have 162 games to prove what they can do for real. As the Royals tell us, this is “Our Time.”

Last season the Kansas City Royals were able to put together arguably one of the best collective performances, both defensively and offensively, by an outfield committee that fans have seen in the organization’s history.  Some may say, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”, but the Royals had a different plan.

They needed some help on the pitching staff and that is what they got in the trade with the San Francisco Giants, sending center fielder Melky Cabrera to the Giants in exchange for left hander Jonathan Sanchez.  The reason that Cabrera was an expendable asset is because of the confidence that the Royals have in their young center fielder Lorenzo Cain. Many regard him as being a defensive upgrade in center since his speed will allow him to have a great amount of range in the oversized outfield of Kauffman Stadium. He will not make the amazing diving catches that can be seen in highlights because he will take a page out of the Willie Wilson handbook and get to balls in the gaps that other outfielders simply cannot get to. His offense in the past has shown that contact will not be a problem but the power will need to continue to develop and get stronger which will come as experience sets in.

It is not arguable that the increase of speed will help him to fill the shoes of Cabrera in the outfield but the offensive production is where the shoes are a little bit bigger to fill.

In 2011, Cabrera set career highs in many categories including batting average (.305), hits (201), doubles (44), home runs (18), RBI (87), and stolen bases (20) to name a few. Now to say that Cain will be able to pencil in all of these statistics in his first full season in the Majors would be a bit hasty. While he could develop into this kind of player in the future, the present is what the organization and fans are about.

In his minor league career of seven season, Cain averages 7 home runs, 47 RBI, 20 stolen bases, and a .295 batting average.  The stolen bases will come with the speed that Cain presents but the power, which has been low at best, is where Cain will need to improve to be a perennial player that the Royals need in center field. More power would equivocate to more run production and the more run production that he can bring to the table the less the pressure that hitters in the top half of the lineup will have to endure.

Manager Ned Yost has already revealed what his Opening Day lineup will look like and with history on his side he does not waiver much on the lineup throughout a season.  So Cain will have the lessened pressure of the bottom half of the lineup which will allow him to continue to get on base, steal bases, and score runs in front of hits from the batter in the top of the lineup. With the pressure off of his back he can develop that power and in years to come be a huge run producer for this team.

The positive that can be brought from this is a little bit of Billy Beane and Oakland A’s style.  The question is not whether Cain will have to fill the offensive hole that Cabrera leaves but can two or three players make up for the loss of offensive production.  This is a task that can be accomplished with the improvements of the young “sophomores” on the team.

No doubt not having Cabrera in the lineup again this season could hurt this team a little since he left such big shoes to fill with his production in 2011.  But will Lorenzo Cain be able to fill those shoes and become the resident citizen in center field will be a question on the future can answer.

By most accounts, “The Process”, as Kansas City Royals General Manager Dayton Moore has often referred to his vision for the Royals, can be broken down into 3 phases. Phase One would be the rebuilding of the farm system. There is no denying that phase is complete. The second phase is transitioning the talent in the farm system to the Big League roster. Most would agree that this phase is mostly complete as well. The third and final phase to “The Process”, would be to identify the missing pieces and fill those gaps via free agency and trade. The Royals are just beginning to enter this phase now. Since Dayton Moore took over his post as Royals GM in June 2006, the trades that he has pulled off have drawn mixed reviews. So as he and his staff embark on Phase Three of “The Process”, it is important that we review the history of the Royals trades in the Dayton Moore era, so as to help predict the success of the recent and future trades that will be made by this regime.

We will use the WAR (Wins Above Replacement) statistic to determine the positive or negative impact of each trade. For those unfamiliar with this statistic, it is defined as: A single number that presents the number of wins the player added to the team above what a replacement player (think AAA or AAAA) would add. In fairness, we will only take into consideration the production that each player the Royals traded FOR had with the Royals, and each player the Royals traded had with the team they traded that player to. So while this study does have some flaws, it will provide a pretty good snapshot as to how Dayton has fared in the trade department.

In the first of this multi-part column, we examine the trades that took place in 2006:

June 20, 2006: The Tampa Bay Devil Rays traded Fernando Cortez and Joey Gathright to the Kansas City Royals for J.P. Howell.

Before Dayton even had time to pick out the furniture in his new office, he decided to go shopping for a=n athletic, speedy center-fielder. Enter Joey Gathright and somebody named Fernando Cortez, and exit J.P. Howell.

Howell: 3.2 WAR since Trade with Rays(06-11)

Gathright: 0.9 WAR with Royals(06-08)

Cortez: 0.1 WAR with Royals (2007)

Rays win trade by 2.2 WAR

July 19, 2006: The New York Mets traded Jeff Keppinger to the Kansas City Royals for Ruben Gotay.

Keppinger has been a useful starting major leaguer for a number of years, and it is easy to forget that he was even a Royal. And there surely have been plenty of times since July 19,2006 that Royals fans would have much rather seen him patrolling 2nd base rather than whoever they had out there. Unfortunately, for the 3 months he was a Royal, he did prety much nothing

Gotay: 0.2 WAR with Mets (2007)

Keppinger: -0.1 WAR with Royals (2006)

Mets win trade by 0.3 WAR

July 24, 2006: The Kansas City Royals traded Mike MacDougal to the Chicago White Sox for Tyler Lumsden (minors) and Dan Cortes.

Mac the 9th didn’t really do much after leaving the Royals. But at least he actually played for the team that traded for him, unlike the 2 gentlemen the Royals got in return.

MacDougal: 0.4 WAR with White Sox (2006-2009)

Lumsden: 0.0 WAR (never made majors)

Cortes: 0.0 WAR (never made majors with Royals before being shipped to Mariners for Yuniesky Betancourt)

White Sox win trade by 0.4 WAR

July 25, 2006: The Los Angeles Dodgers traded Blake Johnson (minors), Julio Pimentel (minors), Odalis Perez and cash to the Kansas City Royals for Elmer Dessens.

Dessens had been a mediocre at best reliever for the Royals for the first part of 2006, so the fact that they were able to flip him prior to the deadline for a serviceable former all-star starting pitcher like Perez, makes this the first decent trade of the DMGM era.

Dessens: 0.1 WAR with Dodgers (2006)

Johnson: 0.0 WAR (never made majors)

Pimentel: 0.0 WAR (never made majors)

Perez: 1.0 WAR with Royals (2006-2007)

Royals win trade by 0.9 WAR

July 25, 2006: The Kansas City Royals traded Tony Graffanino to the Milwaukee Brewers for Jorge De La Rosa.

This is an interesting one. Because if you consider what De La Rosa has been able, when healthy, to do since leaving the Royals then this one without question swings in the Royals favor. However, during De La Rosa’s tenure wiht the Royals, he was one of the most frustrating to watch and at times ineffective pitchers to wear a Royals uniform.

Graffanino: 1.9 WAR with Brewers (2006-2007)

De La Rosa: 0.8 WAR with Royals (2006-2007)

Brewers win trade by 1.1 WAR

July 31, 2006: The Kansas City Royals traded Matt Stairs to the Texas Rangers for Jose Diaz.

This turned out to be pretty equal trade in terms of Suck for Suck.

Stairs: -0.3 WAR with Rangers (88 plate appearances in 2006 before being shipped off to Detroit for the remainder of the season)

Diaz: -0.2 WAR with Royals (6.2 innings in 2006)

Royals win trade by 0.1 WAR

July 31, 2006: The Colorado Rockies traded Scott Dohmann and Ryan Shealy to the Kansas City Royals for Jeremy Affeldt and Denny Bautista.

Royals fans should remember this one quite well. Affeldt was a maddening pitcher for the Royals. I will never be able to hear about a pitcher having blisters on his throwing hand again without thinking of Jeremy Affeldt. Affeldt has since put it together to become a very effective left-handed reliever, but it didn’t happen with the Rockies. Bautista was supposed to have this “electric stuff” that he just needed to harness. Well, it never happened with the Royals, or anywhere else for that matter. And in Shealy, the word was that the Royals had finally found their 1B of the future and could begin taking the pressure off of Mike Sweeney. And…who is Scott Dohmann again? Whoops…

Affeldt: -0.3 with Rockies (2006-2007)

Bautista: -1.1 with Rockies (2006-2007)

Shealy: 0.2 WAR with Royals (2006-2008)

Dohmann: -0.6 WAR with Royals (2006)

In aggregate, both teams essentially added less than replacement talent with this trade,but in this study, the Royals came out on top.

Royals win trade by 1.0 WAR

December 6, 2006: The New York Mets traded Brian Bannister to the Kansas City Royals for Ambiorix Burgos.

For awhile, this trade was the crown jewel trade of the Dayton Moore era. Bannister immediately arrived in Kansas City and settled in as a steady starting pitcher and finishing 3rd in the Rookie of the Year balloting, while Burgos soon encountered legal issues in his native Dominican Republic and never played again.

Burgos: 0.1 WAR with Mets (2007)

Bannister: 2.8 WAR with Royals (2007-2010)

Royals win trade by 2.7 WAR

December 16, 2006: The Kansas City Royals traded Andy Sisco to the Chicago White Sox for Ross Gload.

It is hard to imagine why Kenny Williams was so interested in taking all of the ineffective relievers off of the Royals’ hands. This should have been a good trade. And for one year it was. But when “Gloady” as Buddy Bell liked to call him, is getting 418 plate appearances in a season and starting 95 games at 1st Base, that says a lot more about your team than it does about a steady utility player like Ross Gload.

Sisco: -0.3 WAR with White Sox (2007)

Gload: -1.4 WAR with Royals (2007-2008)

White Sox win trade by 1.3 WAR

So what does this tell us? Other than the fact that the Royals did quite a bit of exchanging of “junk” with other teams in 2006, Dayton Moore came out slightly on the short end of his trades in by -0.6 WAR, based on this study. The big ones were the J.P. Howell trade, which he lost, and the Brian Bannister trade, which he won.

Next week, we analyze the trades made in 2007…

The following information is provided to us by the staff for the Northwest Arkansas Naturals. The I-70 rivalry meets at the Double-A level this week and the teams will host any current and former military members for free.

Series Preview: Naturals hope to stay dry against Cards

Through the first two weeks of divisional play, weather has played as big of a role as either the Naturals or their various opponents. Since the first 12 games of the season – all against South Division foes – the Naturals have endured six rainouts, only two of which have been made up to this point.

Such weather interruptions have resulted in a fragmented schedule, as rain forced the Naturals to miss three straight days of games between Apr. 23 through 25 and go another two days without playing entering this homestand, due to rain in North Little Rock. Such gaps are extremely rare in the regular schedule, as teams get one travel day between certain series and only during the All-Star break are there two scheduled days off in a row.

For their part, the Naturals battled through this inconsistent schedule to finish the road trip at 3-3, with two games left to be made up in June when the team next heads to North Little Rock. Each of the Naturals’ wins came courtesy of strong starting pitching, highlighted by Will Smith’s outing on Apr. 28 in which he allowed just one run over 7 1/3 innings – the longest appearance for any Naturals hurler this season. Mario Santiagofollowed with an impressive performance in a spot start, working six shutout innings in a win over the Travelers two days later. The Naturals’ offense played its part as well, as both Mario Lisson and Jamie Romak homered on back-to-back days during the trip.

While the Naturals’ week kept them near the .500 mark, Tulsa took the opportunity to move ahead in the standings at 13-9, one game ahead of Northwest Arkansas – though the Naturals have two games in hand thanks to the weather. The Travelers sit 2 1/2 games back at 9-0, with these visiting Cardinals a little off the pace at 9-14.

In terms of highly-rated talent, the Cardinals lag behind the rest of the teams in the Texas League’s North Division. Part of that is the result of St. Louis’ place at No. 24 in Baseball America’s organization rankings, but even within the system, most of the Cardinals’ talent is elsewhere in the minor leagues. In particular, the team’s top two prospects, right-hander Shelby Miller and third baseman Zack Cox, both currently play for Advanced-A Palm Beach and could reach Springfield before the end of the season. But for now, Springfield’s roster contains just two players among the organization’s top 30 prospects – catcher Steven Hill (No. 29, currently on the disabled list) and shortstop Ryan Jackson (No. 30).

Despite the team’s slow start, the Cardinals feature a pair of potent forces in the middle of their order. Outfielder Alex Castellanos leads his team with six home runs this season, while first baseman Matthew Adams sits just behind with five. Each player victimized Naturals pitching during the team’s recent series in Springfield.

The series opens up on Tuesday night as Chris Dwyer (1-2, 4.19) takes the mound for the first time since suffering a tough-luck loss against the Cardinals on Apr. 26, when two of the three runs he allowed were unearned. He’ll face Springfield’s Nick Additon (1-0, 2.60), who pitched eight innings of two-run ball against the Naturals on Apr. 27 and has recorded 25 strikeouts against only one walk this season.

After a quick turnaround, the teams will play the second game of the series at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday. Tasked with the early wake-up call will be John Lamb (0-1, 3.86) and Deryk Hooker (0-3, 9.16). Lamb turned in his best start of the year his last time out, allowing two runs (both unearned) over five innings against Springfield on Apr. 27. Hooker allowed four runs over six innings against the Naturals on Apr. 28 and has now lost each of his last three starts.

Thursday marks a return to the typical evening start time, as Smith (1-2, 6.48) pitches for the first time since that impressive outing on Apr. 28. Scheduled to start for Springfield is Michael Blazek (1-1, 5.55), who has given up at least three runs in each of his starts but struck out a season-high eight last time out.

The series wraps up on Friday night, when Heath Rollins (0-2, 6.35) looks to regain the form he showed in his first start of the season, when he allowed just one run on three hits in six solid innings. He matches up against Scott Schneider (1-2, 2.83), who has three quality starts this season but has gotten only enough run support to win one, when he beat Midland on Apr. 18. Schneider has racked up 23 strikeouts in 28 2/3 innings this season.

Naturals offer Military free tickets

SPRINGDALE, AR – Inspired by the bravery of the Navy Seals in Sunday night’s mission in Pakistan, the Northwest Arkansas Naturals would like to recognize and thank all military members – active and retired – with free tickets to any of the next four home games at Arvest Ballpark, starting Tuesday evening.

Two free tickets in the best available seating will be offered with presentation of a military ID at the ticket window. This offer is valid for games through Friday evening only and is not valid with any other offer.

“The amazing work of our military is appreciated every day,” Naturals’ General Manager Eric Edelstein said. “In light of our military’s recent accomplishments abroad, we want to extend a special thank you to those who serve so we may enjoy our freedom.”

In addition, since Arvest Ballpark opened, the Naturals have offered a standing $1 ticket discount to active and retired Military at every home game. Like this special offer, that discount is accessible by presenting a military ID at the ticket office window.

The Northwest Arkansas Naturals are the Double-A Texas League affiliate of the Kansas City Royals and play at state-of-the-art Arvest Ballpark, located in Springdale. The Naturals have a toll-free ticket hotline (1-877-444-2637) for fans to purchase Naturals tickets. Our website, nwanaturals.com offers fans the opportunity to purchase tickets online and avoid lines at the ticket windows by printing their tickets at home or at the office.